The Acrobatic Butterfly

What happened? Did the butterfly fall to the floor? That's because the center of gravity was at the center of the butterfly.

Tape or glue a penny at each corner of the wings (on top of penny image). Place a butterfly on the tip of your finger.

You may have to adjust it a bit to get the balance correct. What happened?The butterfly balanced itself!

That's because the center of gravity point is always vertically below the point from which it is suspended from.

When you added the two pennies, they shifted the center of gravity. The butterfly will also balance on its head on top of a pencil eraser. Stick a pencil into a piece of playdough or clay. Now carefully balance the head of the butterfly on top of the eraser.